STEFANO PIOLI APPOINTED AS AC MILAN NEW COACH

AC Milan have announced the appointment with immediate effect of Mr Stefano Pioli as the new coach of the First Team.

Born in October 1965 in Parma, Stefano Pioli began his career as a coach in 1999. His first coaching experience in Serie A was at Parma in 2006. He then went on to coach several other Serie A Clubs: Chievo Verona, Palermo, Bologna, Lazio and Inter Milan, before moving to Fiorentina in 2017. Stefano Pioli now joins AC Milan on a two-year agreement.

After the appointmet Pioli spoke in his first press conference: “I’m preparing myself for this adventure with a lot of enthusiasm, passion and conviction. I know that I’ve received the call from a great club, one of the most prestigious in the world. I’m sure that I can do a great job here because we have a good team and good players. I’d like to play a style of football that the team enjoys; positive and entertaining football which brings the best out of our players. Football with both quality and intensity. A lot will stem from our attitude and performance in defence, then also from our aggression further forward and our ability to win back the ball. I feel mature, I’m a professional who wants to do well at AC Milan.”

WORK
“I have new ideas which are different to those of Giampaolo and I’ll have to be good at conveying them both well and quickly. The biggest focuses for me are: ideas, intensity and a willingness to take risks. The characteristics of my players are well-suited to the way I play football. I’ll have to work on everything, from the players’ heads to their positioning on the pitch. The next few days will be vitally important in order to be ready as soon as possible for the game against Lecce. I don’t concern myself with numbers, what’s important is having a precise identity. Now I’ll look more at Lecce than Milan’s games in the past, also because we’ll be missing several players who are in action with their national teams. We have to prepare the best we can. This game is a must-win.”

QUALITY AND INTENSITY
“I always think positive. We’re AC Milan and we will always fight to get the best results. There are difficulties that exist but they must be faced and overcome through hard work with quality and intensity. We have to become a united and cohesive team as soon as possible. I feel like a teacher, my goal will be to bring the best out of every one of my players. No one’s spot is guaranteed, everyone will have to feel involved and give their all every day. We have all the ingredients to make it happen: from the club to the facilities to the players.”

OBJECTIVES
“I’ve watched every Milan game this season. I’m very demanding with myself and with my players, I won’t tolerate any lack of desire or ambition. Only through work and sacrifice can you achieve great things. Together we will have to give everything, because there’s also almost an entire league campaign where we can bounce back. Time may be an enemy but it’s also an ally and we have to make the most out of every single moment we have. We have to fight for Champions League qualification. It will take courage, and we’re well aware that there are several other strong teams competing for the same thing.”

THE FANS
“I have a lot of respect for the fans and they have the right to criticise. But for me this will be an extra incentive to do even better. I never have and I still don’t use social media, I prefer to deal with people who look you in the eye when they tell you things. We’ll have to be at our best to win back our fans.”

INDIVIDUALS
“Piątek is extremely effective in the box, he’s a goalscorer. A striker is often conditioned by the team’s play, he certainly has to be helped by the rest of the team. Paquetá is a complete attacking midfielder, both in quality and the quantity of what he produces. I often like to play about with the positions of my players on the pitch, so he could often play between the lines. Leão has a huge amount of potential which we have to make the most of. Suso is also a great player, he has to be put in the ideal conditions to express himself at his best, especially in one-on-ones.”